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US Politics

Trump says Alaska should give two other candidates' votes to Republican Sen. Sullivan

Democrat Mary Peltola leads by 637 votes in unofficial results, and a law professor tells Newsweek Alaska law allows no such transfer.

Donald Trump in 2025
Donald Trump in 2025. Photo: Daniel Torok, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
8 news outlets reported this
Liberal4 outletsTrump's attempt to change the Alaska resultCenter1 outletWhether Alaska law allows Trump's proposalConservative3 outletsTrump's call and the alleged Democratic decoy scheme
Published 3 min read
Overview

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday that the votes for what he called the "Fake Dan Sullivan" and another "slug" on the ballot should be given to Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. He added that "the Election is over" and Sullivan "easily wins." Alaska is still counting its race.

In unofficial results, Democrat Mary Peltola has 102,962 votes to Sullivan's 102,325, a gap of 637 votes. Republican Gerald Heikes has 4,846 and independent Dan J. Sullivan Jr. has 3,600. Alaska uses voting, so ballots for lower-placed candidates move according to voters' next choices.

The New York Times reported that people tied to Peltola's campaign recruited Sullivan Jr. to run. Peltola's campaign denies it, and Sullivan Jr. says he ran because he wanted a change. According to Newsweek, the sued Alaska, asking to block certification in the event the senator lost and the other Sullivan's presence could have swayed the result.

Newsweek reports that a federal judge dismissed the suit before Election Day and that the department appealed. Newsweek also reports that ranked-choice tabulation is scheduled for Nov. 18, with certification targeted for Nov. 25.

Key figures

Three sides of the story

Liberal4 outlets

Trump's attempt to change the Alaska result

The New Republic opens with "Donald Trump is trying to rig another election" and says combining the Sullivans' totals would put the Republican ahead but "would violate the law." It adds that Trump has called for Peltola's prosecution and directed the Justice Department to sue Alaska. The Independent places the post in its live updates, tying it to Trump's search for good news after a " wipeout."

It quotes the post in full. Axios, in a short report, says Trump's Justice Department has cited voter confusion and sent target letters to Democratic operatives. The New York Times headline says Trump "takes fresh aim" at Alaska and notes Peltola led in incomplete returns.

Its analysis suggested she was on track to prevail. The New Republic also quotes an Anchorage resident who told CNN the ballot is "pretty clear."

Center1 outlet

Whether Alaska law allows Trump's proposal

Newsweek builds its report around Alaska's rules. It says an Alaska legal expert told it Trump's proposal "has no basis" under state election law, and quotes University of Washington law professor Jeff Feldman saying Alaska law is "crystal clear" on tabulating votes. It walks through ranked-choice counting and the unofficial totals, including the 637-vote gap.

It profiles Gerald Heikes, the candidate Trump apparently called a "slug." It lists the count dates: updates on Nov. 10 and 13, ranked-choice tabulation Nov. 18, and certification targeted for Nov. 25. It also traces the dispute: the state removed Sullivan Jr. from the ballot, a judge reversed that, and a federal judge dismissed the Justice Department's suit.

Newsweek says it contacted the White House and the campaigns for comment.

Conservative3 outlets

Trump's call and the alleged Democratic decoy scheme

Breitbart News leads with Trump's post, headlined as "No Other Fair Solution!", and recalls Sullivan's earlier charge that Democrats ran a "secret scheme to trick Alaskan voters." It notes Trump's view that Peltola should be prosecuted. The Daily Signal's report places the post alongside other undecided races.

It gives Decision Desk's vote totals, its Senate tally of 54 Democrats to 44 Republicans and the Mississippi count. It also cites the New York Times report that Peltola aides recruited "Decoy Dan," which her campaign denied. Just the News says the race remains too close to call and that Republicans accuse the Peltola campaign of recruiting a spoiler, which the campaign denies.

It reports that Trump said Sullivan would have won outright if not for the other Dan Sullivan on the ballot, and gives the percentages for each candidate.

All sources: 8 articles from 8 outlets

Liberal (4)

Center (1)

Conservative (3)

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